1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to systems and apparatus for emitting a scent to an area, and more specifically to a device utilizing a specially adapted compact disc, digital video disc, or other playback device which includes one or more scent cartridges and means for triggering the scent(s) according to the operation of the prerecorded playback medium. The device provides a scent(s) corresponding to the message (music, story, movie, information, etc.) of the playback medium, thereby providing a more all encompassing sensory effect.
2. Description of the Related Art
The advance of electronics has led to a corresponding advance in the recorded entertainment field as well. From the early development of recorded sound to the development of motion picture film, the entertainment industry has developed ways for stimulating the auditory and visual senses of persons. Later advances have led to even greater realism (stereo sound, color and wide screen movies, etc.), with some efforts being made toward the development of tactile sensory stimulation even more recently.
Ideally, an entertainment or informational system might stimulate the four most important senses of sight, hearing, touch, and smell. While great strides have been made toward providing realism for visual and audio effects, very little has been accomplished toward providing scents to stimulate the olfactory senses, particularly in combination with visual and audio effects. While some efforts have been made to provide realistic scents in certain limited training environments (e.g., advanced flight simulators which include the smell of burning wiring to add realism to a simulated electrical problem), such devices are exceedingly complex and very narrow in their scope; they cannot provide a plurality of different scents in accordance with recorded audio or visual entertainment or the like.
Accordingly, a need will be seen for a device which emits one or more scents in accordance with the sound or visual output of a prerecorded audio and/or visual medium (e.g., tape, compact disc or CD, digital video disc or DVD, etc.) which has been adapted to provide olfactory stimulation as well. The present invention comprises a specially adapted recording medium containing one or more scent emitting cartridges. A specially adapted player unit accepts the recording and triggers the emission of the scent(s) during the play of the recording according to signals prerecorded on the recording, thereby providing a realistic entertainment experience involving visual, auditory, and olfactory senses.
A discussion of the related art of which the present inventor is aware and its differences and distinctions from the present invention, is provided below.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,556,539 issued on Dec. 3, 1985 to Donald Spector, titled xe2x80x9cDisc-Playing Aroma Generator,xe2x80x9d describes a scent impregnated disc sandwiched between a pair of plastic sheets. Air is forced between the sheets to evaporate the scent and distribute it into the ambient air. Spector provides only a scent emitting device, with no means for tying it into or triggering its operation from an audio or visual player of any type. Further, no means of producing more than a single scent is provided by Spector, whereas the present invention may provide a series of different scents simultaneously or sequentially in a single operation, in combination with audio and/or visual entertainment.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,629,604 issued on Dec. 16, 1986 to Donald Spector, titled xe2x80x9cMulti-Aroma Cartridge Player,xe2x80x9d describes a container having a series of scent impregnated compartments therein. The container is placed within a playing device which has a series of heating elements which are in registry with the scent impregnated compartments of the container. Various scents are emitted as various heating elements are activated to evaporate some of the scent in the corresponding compartment. While Spector states that his device may be synchronized with a video tape or movie presentation, the actuation of his system by heating elements is relatively slow in comparison to the present pressurized system, and would be difficult to synchronize.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,905,112 issued on Feb. 27, 1990 to Steven W. Rhodes, titled xe2x80x9cScent Cassette,xe2x80x9d describes a tape cassette having a perforated compartment into which a block of scent emitting material is placed. The cassette includes small fan blades or other means driven by the cassette spools, for drawing air through the cassette and past the scent emitting material. Rhodes provides only a single scent, rather than the multiple scents possible with the present invention, and does not provide any means of synchronizing the scent emission with any particular portion of the audio tape, as provided by the present invention. Moreover, Rhodes does not provide any means of producing a scent in conjunction with a video display of any sort, as provided by the present invention in combination with a DVD device.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,069,876 issued on Dec. 3, 1991 to Candace Oshinsky, titled xe2x80x9cCombined Scent And Audio Point Of Sale Display Unit,xe2x80x9d describes a device having one or more scent cartridges activated in conjunction with an audio tape. Where more than a single cartridge is provided, only a single scent may be emitted at one time, due to the manual selector switch means of the Oshinsky device. In contrast, the present scent emitting invention may emit a series of scents simultaneously, if so desired, with the scent emission triggered automatically by an inaudible digital signal(s) from the recording as it plays. Moreover, the Oshinsky device uses a different principle than the present scent emitting invention, with Oshinsky using a pneumatic pump to pass air over the scent cartridge(s) rather than injecting the scent into the air.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,565,148 issued on Oct. 15, 1996 to Daniel B. Pendergrass, titled xe2x80x9cDevice For Selectively Providing A Multiplicity Of Aromas,xe2x80x9d describes a device having a multicompartmented cylinder, with each compartment containing a scent producing insert. The scent cylinders are arranged concentrically about the central axis of the cylinder, in the manner of the cylinder of a revolver type pistol. The cylinder is selectively rotated to position a single scent cartridge in line with an air source, which blows through the volatile scent cartridge to expel the scent from the device. The Pendergrass device is only capable of emitting a single scent at a time, whereas the present invention can emit multiple scents simultaneously, if so desired. Moreover, the present invention utilizes scent cartridges containing a liquid scent material which is injected into a plenum as a fine mist or vapor, unlike the means used with the Pendergrass scent apparatus.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,610,674 issued on Mar. 11, 1997 to David A. Martin, titled xe2x80x9cPrecision Fragrance Dispenser Apparatus,xe2x80x9d describes a device in which the scent is provided only to a single user via a tube, rather than to the ambient air in a room or the like, as in the case of the present invention. The Martin apparatus also includes breath sensing means, which causes the scent to be delivered in synchronization with breathing. This additional complexity is unnecessary with the present invention, which delivers the scent to the air in the room, rather than to an individual user.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,949,522 issued on Sep. 7, 1999 to Joseph S. Manne, titled xe2x80x9cMultimedia Linked Scent Delivery System,xe2x80x9d describes a system using tubes to conduct the scent(s) to the nose of the user, rather than into the ambient air, as in the case of the present invention. Aside from the different means of supplying the scent to the user, the Manne system is essentially opposite the present system, as Manne provides air under pressure upstream of the scent holders and blows the air past the scents in the holders, rather than injecting the scents into the air downstream of a fan, as in the present invention. Moreover, while Manne discusses means for synchronizing scent output with audio and/or video recordings, he does not provide any means for using a CD and/or DVD audio and/or video disc to trigger the scent output, as provided by the present invention.
PCT Patent Publication No. 99/08174 published on Feb. 18, 1999 to the Illinois Institute of Technology, titled xe2x80x9cApparatus For Generating Odor Upon Electronic Signal Demand,xe2x80x9d describes a device having a scent impregnated disc in which the scent material is heated for vaporization. The scent is then distributed through the ambient air. With only a single disc, the device can only distribute a single scent, as opposed to the multiple scents which may be provided simultaneously by the present invention. The device of the PCT ""174 Patent Publication is thus more closely related to the scent emitting disc of the ""539 U.S. Patent to Spector, discussed further above, than to the present scent emitting invention.
Finally, PCT Patent Publication No. 99/38,102 published on Jul. 29, 1999 to Bala Narayanaswamy, titled xe2x80x9cOlfactory Emitting Systemxe2x80x9d describes a system in which one or more pressurized scented gases are provided, with actuation of valves for releasing the gases being triggered by certain predetermined words or phrases detected by appropriate voice recognition means. The Narayanaswamy system is particularly adapted for producing a scent at a remotely located point from the master program, with the remote point having appropriate scent producing means. Thus, Narayanaswamy is directed more to Internet, cable, or broadcast use than to the provision of a scent(s) for persons listening to music or viewing a video using a single cohesive system, as provided by the present invention.
None of the above inventions and patents, either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed.
The present invention comprises a scent emitting device which provides one or more scents to the ambient air within a room or the like, with the scent output being triggered by a playback device (preferably a compact disc or CD player or digital video disc or DVD player, but adaptable to other recorded media and playback devices as well) in accordance with the prerecorded audio or video program being played. The present invention provides much greater realism for such programs, particularly video programs, by simultaneously stimulating three of the five senses (i.e., sight, sound, and smell).
The present system operates by means of an inaudible and/or invisible signal which is provided from the CD, DVD, or other prerecorded playback medium which triggers the scent dispensing apparatus in a specially adapted player. When the apparatus is triggered, a small pump is actuated to inject a small amount of a scent producing substance into the plenum of the device, whereupon a fan or the like blows the vaporized scent into the ambient air of the room. The present device may include a series of scent cartridges and corresponding pump mechanisms, in order to dispense a series of scents either sequentially or simultaneously, as desired.
Accordingly, it is a principal object of the invention to provide an improved scent emitting device for dispensing one or more scents into the ambient air of an enclosed area.
It is another object of the invention to provide an improved scent emitting device which scent emission is triggered by inaudible and/or invisible signals provided from a CD or DVD disc by means of a specially adapted CD or DVD player.
It is a further object of the invention to provide an improved scent emitting device in which signals actuate one or more pump devices which inject a scent compound into a plenum for evaporation and distribution to the ambient air by means of a fan or the like.
An additional object of the invention is to provide an improved scent emitting device which may emit a plurality of scents either sequentially or simultaneously, according to programming.
Still another object of the invention is to provide an improved scent emitting device in which scent emitting cartridges are easily replaceable as desired or as required.
It is an object of the invention to provide improved elements and arrangements thereof in an apparatus for the purposes described which is inexpensive, dependable and fully effective in accomplishing its intended purposes.
These and other objects of the present invention will become readily apparent upon further review of the following specification and drawings.